Originally the Zwijndrechtse Waard, on which the municipalities of Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht and Zwijndrecht and the village of Rijsoord (partially) lie, was a separate river island, the western branch of river Waal separating the two. However, as the Waal stretch has been closed off at both ends, the Waard is now generally considered to be part of IJsselmonde. The dammed western end of the Waal river is now popularly referred to as Waaltje ("little Waal").